George g



(Model) G. G. NIEDOMANSKI.

Box Fastener.

No. 239,2 7. PatentedM arch- 22, 1881.-

WITNESSES INVENTOR ATTORNEYS.

' Unirrnn STATES PATENT Current.-

GEORGE G. NIEDOMANSKI, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

BOX-FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 239,267, dated March 22, 1881.

Application filed July 30, 1880. (ModeL) To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE G. Ninno- MANSKI, of Washington city, .District of Golumbia, have invented a new and Improved Lock for Cigar-Boxes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to spring catches or looks applied to cigar-boxes, by which means [0 nails are dispensed with and a fastening is" provided that may be instantly operated to lock or unlock the lid to the box.

The object of my invention is to provide a cheap, simple, and effective device that may be applied to the box by the most inexperienced persons with accuracy and dispatch; and the invention consists in a clasp, to be secured to the lid or cover of the box, made of a rectangular strip of sheet metal, pronged or sharpened atone of its ends and bent to form an offset of a width not greater than the thickness of the front of the box, so that the said offset may be placed upon the edge of the box and the metal strip securely held thereby while the lid is brought down upon the prongedor sharpened upturned end and be completely perforated thereby, so that the pointed end of the metal may be turned down over the top of the box and embrace the outer edge of the box between it and the offset portion' of the metal strip. The clasp is thereby securely held to the box. The downwardlyprojecting end of the clasp is perforated, and engages with a pin secured to and projecting 3 5 from the front of the box, and is rounded and its end curved outwardly to allow it to freely pass over the pin in looking, and give a hold for disengaging the perforation of the clasp from the pin when it is to be unlocked.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of acigar-box, represented partly open, with my clasp attached. Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the-lid and front edge of the box, upon an enlarged scale, showing the lid closed down upon the up: turned end of the metal strip before it is secured; Fig. 3, a similar view, showing the clasp secured and the lock complete and Fig. 4, a perspective view of the metal strip de- 50 tached.

A sheet-metal blank, A, of rectangular form, is perforated, rounded, and curved outwardly at one end, andis pronged or sharpened at its other end. At a point near its middle the blank is bent at right angles to the lower perforated end, and is again bent at right angles between the first bend and the prong, so that the pronged end will be bent in an opposite direction to and parallel with the perforated end, in such manner that an offset, a, of a width approximately equal to the thickness of the front of the box will be formed in the metal blank. This width of offset will be found to be just sufficient to perforate the lid at a safe distance from its edge, and will also 6 rest upon and be firmly supported by the edge of the box-front B, so that the blank may be placed upon the said edge and the lid 0 be pressed down upon it with sufficient force to be readily perforated by the pronged upturned end a of the blank. The clasp is then permanently secured to the lid by turning over the projecting pronged edge of the blank a toward the front end of the lid. The lock is then completed by holding the lid tightly 7 5 down and forcing a pin, D, through the hole (6 in the clasp, and also entirely through the front of the box. This pin may be clinched upon the inner side, if desired, but this has been found unnecessary.

The lock may be rapidly attached to a box, as above described, and it will not be necessary to observe any accuracy of placing the parts in an exact position upon the box when the clasp is attached, as it will be found impossible to misplace the pin, so that they will not properly lock with each other, as the perforation in the clasp serves as a never-failing guide.

A very secure lock is thus obtained that will 0 not become unclasped by rough usage.

The clasp may be readily released from the pin by placing the finger-nail beneath the outwardly-curved projecting lower end, a of the clasp and pressing it outwardly until the pin 5 is disengaged from the hole in the clasp.

What I claim as new is-- y l. A look for cigar-boxes, consisting of a clasp, A, made of a rectangular sheet-metal blank, formed with one of its ends, a, pointed,

and its other end perforated at a and outbox to engage with the perforation of the clasp, wardly curved, and its middle portion bent to substantially as and for the purpose described. IO form an offset, a, approximately the thickness The above specification of my invention of the front of the box, combined with the lid signed by me this 12th day of July, 1880.

5 of the box by perforating the lid or cover with GEORGE G. NIEDOMANSKI.

the pointed end and then bending it over to- Witnesses: ward the front of the box, together with a pin WM. H. ROWE,

secured to and projecting from the front of the SoLoN O. KEMoN. 

